Mayor, Council at Odds

The City Council is expected to approve legislation aimed at reining in the billions of taxpayer dollars that are spent annually on outside contracts, a move that Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration contends will increase government inefficiency and bureaucracy.

In the past five years, spending on contracts has increased at nearly twice the rate of spending in the city budget. According to the council, the city spends more than $10 billion annually on "contractual services," which run the gamut from security...